Kodak retracts car sponsorship

Posted: Wednesday, December 14, 2005

ATLANTA - Kodak got tired of backing losers in the Nextel Cup Series and it decided it wasn't going to take it anymore.

After sponsoring teams for the last 20 years - and spending more than $100 million in the process - Kodak withdrew its support of Travis Kvapil's No. 77 Dodge at Penske South Racing. The move leaves Penske with only two full-time teams for 2006, and it put Kvapil in the unemployment line.

The company also was a longtime sponsor at Morgan-McClure Motorsports. Kodak's last victory came in 1998.

Kodak wasn't happy that two of Penske's teams - one driven by Rusty Wallace, the other by Ryan Newman - qualified for the Chase for the Championship while Kvapil's team finished 33rd in the standings with only two top-10 finishes.

Gordon had pass

Jeff Gordon is upset with NASCAR's comments about him skipping the annual awards ceremony at New York on Dec. 2.

The driver said he had permission from the sanctioning body to miss the banquet so he could prepare for an all-star race in Paris on Dec. 3.

"When the conflict came up, I talked to the higher-ups in NASCAR, and they told me, 'Hey, we understand. You've got a commitment and you can't be here this year.' I'm pretty disappointed in some of the things that were said," Gordon told the Long Island Press.

Sponsorship change

The U.S. Coast Guard will move its sponsorship away from Justin Labonte on the NASCAR Busch Series circuit and work with Kevin Harvick.

... Michael "Fatback" McSwain was promoted to race director at the newly formed Wood Brothers Racing/ST Motorsports teams. McSwain will be in charge of the Wood's No. 21 Ford in Nextel Cup as well as ST's No. 59 and 47 in the Busch Series. David Hyder left BAM Racing to replace McSwain as the new crew chief for the Woods.